Jamaica has one of the highest rates of extrajudicial killings in the world, a statistic, which by itself, soundly condemns the professionalism and integrity of our police. However, when one pairs this with the fact that we also have one of the highest murder rates in the world, things begin to make sense and one cannot help but feel that a dated, ill-trained and ill-equipped police force is doing its best at a job it is not prepared to handle. My observations are far from scientific, but it makes sense on a gut level that if you have more brazen gunmen running around you will have more brazen gunmen being shot by the police.

The Bruce Golding-led government recently stated that they cannot reveal their crime plan as it would tell the criminals too much and undermine the efforts of the government in ‘Taming the Crime Beast’. My interpretation of such statements is there is NO plan, and as usual we are just winging it…but then again, I am cynical.

And the logic of cynical reasonings is thus. In order to effectively combat crime in Jamaica, one of the first obstacles we have to tackle is a dated and ineffective police force. There is no evidence this task is underway so I have to conclude there is no method to the madness. We are just winging it and hoping the criminal element will find Jesus. While I hope they do get a little God in them, the burning question is:

How do we revolutionize a police force in short order?

The answer I am sure lies in some government white papers buried so deep they will never see the light of day. So again using a bit of common sense I have compiled a list of actions in no specific order to begin this arduous task.

1. Establishment of a central command

Creation of a central intelligence gathering and processing unit staffed by a small team of highly trained investigators who know how to assimilate data and look for patterns in information. This group will be the head of the spear which directs the actions of the larger body. Kingfish and 911 calls would be routed through this command center.

2. LoJack all police cars

We need to place a tracker in all police cars so they can be located and monitored on a real-time map from central command; in this way, resources can be more carefully aimed at criminal activity. This also serves the purpose of pulling police officers in line and ensuring police cars are available for police business and not personal whims and pleasures.

3. Mandatory assistance

Police officers should be required by law to intervene in any disturbances they encounter in the streets and either resolve the problems themselves or radio the location in so other personnel can come in and resolve the issue. No more driving past car accidents, or broken down motorists, or sections of road way that are blocked off and obstructing the traffic flow. This will teach our police officers how to deal with problems – they cannot just shoot in any situation, and will also help with winning over the trust and respect of the society who largely believe the police are the enemy.

4. Ban personal mobile phones for cops on active duty

Not only does it look unprofessional but it is a source of interruption in times of crisis.

5. Renovate police stations

Renovate all police stations so that officers can have a comfortable home base from which to work. By fostering pride in their surroundings, officers can feel better about themselves and the jobs they do.

6. Evolution of the ‘Big Book’

Retire the ‘Big Book’. Enter statements in a central computer database so data can be measured, searched, analyzed and accessed in real time, across space and time. This database should also interface with the fingerprinting database. This will actually give the police intelligence on which to base their work. As it is now, ‘Big Books’ are for reference and cannot share information, which makes it very ineffective.

Scenario 1
You need a police report, so you have to go to the Ministry of Justice to pay for the report and then go elsewhere to pick it up days later.

Scenario 2
You need a police report, you go to the Ministry of Justice to pay for it, they search their database, print your statement, stamp it and hand it to you within minutes.

7. Hire secretaries for police stations

The practice of using a trained police officer for data entry is downright stupid. Each police station should be provided with a secretary to take statements and enter them in the computer system. This way we will free up wasted manpower which can be utilized more effectively. This will also serve to take the headache out of giving a statement to someone who cannot spell your name.

These are just some suggestions to get the ball rolling. We do not have to implement them all immediately to get things going. If we break it into prioritized tasks and do it step by step, I am sure in a few years Jamaica could have a police force it can be proud of.